Pink and Black
by Fuai
Summary: 30 prompts, Itachi/Sakura. 025. Search: "I thought you were better than that, Itachi-san! Sasuke is an idiot, but I didn't take you as one too!"
1. I'm here

**Title: **Pink and Black

**Disclaimer: **Naruto belongs to Kishimoto Masashi. No copyright infringement is intended; this is written purely for entertainment purposes.

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**Comfort**  
002. I'm here

It was never his intention for Sasuke to go to Orochimaru. He provoked Sasuke's rage so that he could become stronger, but he miscalculated his little brother's impatience to obtain the power he needed to defeat himself.

Foolish, foolish, little brother.

That corpse parading as Otokage is no brother of his.

A familiar pair of gloved hands wrapped themselves gently around his tight, curling fists, as its owner channeled her soothing green chakra into the cuts in his palm where he unconsciously clenched down hard enough to draw blood.

She did not need to say a word. Her presence alone was enough to give him the comfort he needed in this moment of remorse and sorrow.

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**A/N:** This 30_prompts drabble collection is a strange project because while I love ItaSaku, it's uncommon of me to work on something which I don't have firm background knowledge of, seeing as I've dropped the series awhile back. Please feel free to correct me if I get any facts wrong when I work in canon-verse, thanks!


	2. Muse

**Title: **Pink and Black

**Disclaimer: **Naruto belongs to Kishimoto Masashi. No copyright infringement is intended; this is written purely for entertainment purposes.

**

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Attraction**  
007. Muse

Shisui once asked him which part of Sakura he found most attractive. Itachi paused at the question, unable to sort out a single, definitive answer on the spot, but luckily, his cousin was far too alcohol-laden by that time and had gone on to remark on a "great pair of legs" as he whistled at a passing-by female.

It had been a few weeks since then, but the question haunted Itachi's mind whenever he had a quiet moment to himself. After delivering the mission scroll to the Hokage, he had set off for Sakura's apartment, only to find her strangely absent. She was supposed to have returned by midnight, but from the look of things she was likely running late from emergencies at the hospital, as usual. Not bothering to turn on the lights, he made himself comfortable on her couch and continued pondering. This time, he tried attacking the problem from different angles, hoping to arrive at a solution this way.

She is Haruno Sakura, revered medic-nin of Konohagakure, prized apprentice of the Slug Princess, female member of Team 7. Not just a skilled healer, she was also a lethal fighter, aided by her genjutsu and monstrous strength. Furthermore, her keen intelligence and sharp rationality made her a worthy opponent in matters of strategies and tactics.

An impressive profile, but was this the answer he was looking for?

Hair of spring's vibrant cherry blossoms. Eyes of the lushest green leaves. Hands that could bring someone on the brink of death to life again, and crack gaping holes and fissures into the ground if she so chose. A slender body of unsuspected strength, filled with all the right curves and a pair of sinfully long legs. Sakura was by no means a classic beauty, yet Itachi was enraptured by her unique colourings and mercurial nature the moment he first met her all those years ago. She used to be such a shy little thing, a blushing bud yearning for the slighest bit of warmth, and true to his expectations, she had blossomed into an exquisite flower worthy of praise and admiration.

His lips stretched into a ghost of a smile at the memory of times when Sakura's legs were intertwined with his as they cuddled together in the same bed, her back fitting seamlessly against his chest and her head tucked underneath his chin, allowing him to wrap his arms around her comfortably.

She had a quick temper, no doubt thanks to her teacher, but she was never one to hold a grudge. Underneath her sweet and caring demeanor lies a core of iron will, unwavering in face of obstacles. She was ever so detailed in the smallest things, and at the same time, she could be as haphazard as her blond teammate as she rushed from place to place following that mad schedule of hers.

A soft tinkle of the seashell wind chimes interrupted his musings, signaling the return of the apartment's owner. Her voice reached him first in the dark.

"Itachi-kun?"

He pulled her down into his lap as she neared him, producing a small squeak of surprise from her while he buried his head into the crook of her neck. The ever-familiar scent of nectarine and honey greeted him as he breathed deeply and held her close. A week away was enough for him to miss her terribly. She seemed to understand without needing to ask, and she embraced him tenderly, dropping light kisses on his hair and whispering murmurs of affection into his ear.

The answer was right in front of him, all along.

Not that Shisui will ever know.

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**A/N:** Non-massacre, obviously. I wonder if I should have done this prompt in Sakura's POV instead, lol.


	3. Puppy love

**Title: **Pink and Black

**Disclaimer: **Naruto belongs to Kishimoto Masashi. No copyright infringement is intended; this is written purely for entertainment purposes.

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**Underneath**  
004. Puppy love

A young, dark-haired boy leaned casually upon the academy's outer wall, assuming an imperturbable manner despite his head angling up every now and then as if searching for something. As his eyes slid down to the pavement once more, his keen sense of hearing picked up on a small shuffle of footsteps off to the corner.

"Who's there?"

A small gasp was heard before the figure quickly retreated. Was that _pink_ _hair_? His brows furrowed as he called to mind a particular classmate with that atrocious hair colour, but a sharp poke to his forehead halted his thoughts. He whined, "Itte! Nii-san!"

Itachi smiled down at his little brother. "You should pay more attention to your surroundings, otouto."

Sasuke huffed and made a face, though he took Itachi's hand readily as the brothers made their way through the streets to head back to the Uchiha compound. He was happy that his beloved older brother had time to spend with him, but he disliked the infrequency of it due to Itachi being both the clan heir and an active chuunin, resulting in a heavy load of responsibilities that Itachi must attend to before spending what precious little leisure time he had with him. "I almost thought you forgot to come pick me up," Sasuke accused half-heartedly.

"Oh? I thought you were busy being distracted, rather..." Itachi teased. He had seen a ruffle of skirt disappear behind the corner while he approached Sasuke with a smooth and silent gait, and had assumed it was yet another of Sasuke's little fan girls who were forever cooing and squealing around him.

A tinge of red coloured Sasuke's cheeks as he groaned mentally. Itachi better not say anything to their mother!

* * *

"Tadaima."

"Okaerinasai!" Mikoto greeted her sons with a warm smile. "How was your day at the academy, Sasuke-chan?"

The young boy shrugged and sat down next to his mother. "It was all right. We did some taijutsu training today—" A low but audible rumble of the stomach interrupted his words, and Sasuke blushed brightly.

Mikoto raised a hand to her mouth to cover up a laugh. "My, my, someone is hungry this afternoon! Was your lunch not filling enough, Sasuke-chan?"

Embarrassed, he ducked his head down and mumbled a reply that was incoherent to both Mikoto and Itachi.

"What did you say, Sasuke-chan? You need to speak up for me to hear you." Mikoto coaxed gently.

Sasuke wished the earth would swallow him up and save him the mortification. Several long seconds passed, and finally, he gave in to the patient gaze of his mother. "A girl startled me and I dropped one of my onigiri." He grimaced, "…it was a tomato one too."

Grinning delightedly, Mikoto was eager to hear more about this story and continued to question. "What did she do to startle our Sasuke-chan so?"

"She seemed to have appeared out of nowhere all of a sudden!" Sasuke burst out, "She just thrust this package into my hands, said something so fast I could hardly understand her, and before I could make her repeat herself, she had the nerve to run away from me! Not to mention, my onigiri fell to the ground, thanks to her!"

Mikoto let out a peal of laughter, and even Itachi was unable to resist a chuckle at his brother's rather unfortunate circumstance.

"If I ever see her again—" Sasuke stopped abruptly and his eyes widened as he recalled the image of the annoying girl. "It was she! She was the one hiding in the corner after class today!"

Itachi lifted an eyebrow and remarked dryly, "Seems like you have quite a determined little fan girl there, Sasuke."

Mikoto's eyes twinkled. "She sounds like a lovely girl to me. Now, did you not say she gave you a present, Sasuke-chan?"

"Yes, she did! Here it is." Sasuke reached into his kunai pouch and retrieved a small, carefully wrapped package.

"Well? Go ahead and open it!"

He exhaled noisily, slightly exasperated at his mother's enthusiasm toward the whole situation. Nevertheless, he ripped the plain wrapping paper apart without further ado and was startled at finding a kunai lying within.

"A kunai? That is a rather unusual choice for a gift." Mikoto wondered aloud.

Itachi's eyes caught onto the familiar sight of the kunai. His hand hovered over the weapon while he looked at his younger brother, wordlessly asking for permission, and he took it up for further inspection when Sasuke nodded. The weight and design were identical to his regular set, and his eyes narrowed at the Uchiha fan engraved on the bottom of the hilt.

"This kunai belongs to me."

Mikoto and Sasuke both stared at him, uncomprehending of his declaration.

"Are you sure, Itachi-kun? Why would Sasuke-chan's classmate have one of your kunai in her possession?"

Itachi acknowledged with a tilt of his head. "It is indeed mine. I am not certain why or how she came upon it, but I intend to find out." He turned toward his brother and asked, "Do you remember this girl's name?"

"...Sakura," Sasuke answered after a moment's deliberation. "I only remember that much because her name matches her pink hair."

* * *

Sakura fidgeted in her seat while Iruka-sensei lectured on the dispelling technique if one was caught in a genjutsu. All through class, she could feel someone watching her intently as if burning a hole through the back of her head, and even without turning back, she knew it was Sasuke. She had only herself to blame since she had all but thrown his brother's kunai at him, and she was not exactly sure if he understood her request for him to return said weapon to its rightful owner. Damn her nervousness! Now if only class would be over soon and she could escape home to safety, she wished desperately.

"...that's it for today. Class dismissed," Iruka announced.

At record speed, Sakura packed her belongings up and raced toward the door. She heard Sasuke calling her name but she ignored him, so intent on avoiding her classmate that she ran on blindly without noticing where she was going. Eventually, she had to stop and catch her breath, and she found herself collapsing at the edge of a training ground.

"Sakura-san? Are you all right?"

She snapped her head up at the sound of his quiet tenor and came eye to eye with none other than Uchiha Itachi himself. She blanched, but as she scrambled to her feet she could feel her cheeks heating up at an alarming rate. "U-Uchiha-san," she bowed and stammered a greeting.

Sakura could feel Itachi studying her with interest, and when it seemed like he was not about to speak any time soon, she ventured timidly, "Did you get your kunai back, Uchiha-san?"

Itachi nodded. "I did, and thank you for returning it to me. But I am curious, how did you end up with it?"

"You must have forgotten already." Sakura shook her head and her lips stretched into a small smile. "I was practicing with my kunai at the academy training ground last week, and you passed by and saw how badly I must have been doing. You corrected my stance and demonstrated once for me." She grew more animated by then, her large green eyes dancing in merriment as she thought back to her improved accuracy after Itachi's tutelage.

"It's probably of little matter to you, but I thought you may appreciate your kunai back. I cleaned and sharpened it too! We'd covered how to in class a while ago and Iruka-sensei said I was very good at caring for my weapons!" Sakura bubbled with a hint of pride, but when Itachi failed to respond, she asked hesitantly, "It's fine, is it?"

"Aa." Itachi agreed. "You did a good job as well."

She beamed.

Itachi smiled gently in return, and offered a hand to the young girl. "Come, I'll walk you home."

She slipped her hand in his and relished at the warmth. "Ne, Uchiha-san..."

"Call me Itachi, Sakura-chan."

"Itachi-san, then," she accepted easily.

He squeezed her fingers and indicated for her to continue.

"I think I know why Sasuke-kun looks up to you so much now," she said. She caught him looking at her as if asking for an explanation, but she giggled and said no more.

It was a comfortable walk back home, with Sakura growing increasingly carefree in the presence of the Uchiha heir whom she thought to be aloof but kind previously. He made her feel _safe_, and that was a warm, fuzzy feeling that Sakura thought she rather liked a lot.

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**A/N:** I'm not sure how effectively this one came across. I made a play at SasuSaku in the beginning, only to reveal in the end that Sakura's objective was Itachi all along. It is of course more admiration and respect at this point, but still. :)


	4. Magic

**Title: **Pink and Black

**Disclaimer: **Naruto belongs to Kishimoto Masashi, and the concept of Amortentia is borrowed from the Harry Potter novels by J. K. Rowling. No copyright infringement is intended. 

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**Love Potion**  
008. Magic

"Come on, Itachi. A whiff won't hurt! I tested it myself, no harm done!" Shisui said cheekily and continued badgering his stoic cousin.

"Hn," Itachi grunted noncommittally. His boisterous cousin's incessant pleads for him to smell the suspicious looking substance called Amortentia was starting to grate on his nerves, and he was almost tempted to give in just to shut Shisui up.

...not that Shisui will stay quiet for long. It was a well known fact that Shisui loved to rile people up, and his favourite target was no other than the Uchiha clan heir, for it gave him great delight to crack his cousin's calm demeanor even just a little.

"It's funny, really," Shisui continued, twirling the glass vial of transparent pink liquid in his hand. "Amortentia smells different depending on the person. How on earth was something like this concocted in the first place?"

Itachi blinked slowly. "What does it smell like to you?"

"Hmm... fresh leaves, yakitori, smoke, and a citrus like scent that seems familiar, but I really can't recall where I have smelled it before," Shisui recalled with a chuckle. "Baby cousin took a whiff and had the funniest expression on his face! I had to beat it out of him nearly, but he finally admitted he smelled tomatoes, burnt ash, and honey. Isn't that funny? I thought Sasuke hated anything sweet! Maybe it's a secret desire that he doesn't even realize himself?"

Tomatoes and burnt ash, Itachi could understand. Sasuke loved tomatoes, and burnt ash was the remainders of the Uchiha clan's signature fire jutsu. It was clear that Sasuke took pride in his clan. However, he was somewhat baffled by the scent of honey as well. As Shisui exclaimed, his little brother disliked anything sweet, and honey was distinctly sweet smelling.

He was broken out of his musings as Shisui thrust the vial in front of his face once more. "Now, it's your turn!"

Itachi eyed his cousin warily before he took the vial and uncorked it in one swift motion. The potion did not react to open air, and the long-haired Uchiha brought the vial close to his nose and took a careful sniff.

Faint traces of cabbage and onigiri with seaweed first registered in his mind, then the scent quickly changed to that of musty old books, sharp steel, and finally... nectarines? And was that a hint of honey too?

"How is it? What do you smell?" Shisui prodded impatiently.

Itachi took his time to formulate an answer as he lowered the vial and corked it shut. "Cabbage and onigiri with seaweed, old books, and steel."

"That's it?" Shisui pressed closely, as if disappointed that the answer was so _Itachi_. He was half hoping to hear something unusual so that he may laugh at his solemn cousin, for he dearly needed laughing at.

"Aa," Itachi affirmed, wisely leaving out the last bit of information out. He was unable to identify the sweet scent as something he loved, and so he would keep it close to heart until he discovered the source of it. Shisui might have been on to something when he mentioned Sasuke's possible secret desire—maybe he had one as well, and he fully intended to find out exactly what it was. 

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**A/N: **Although Sakura is not actually in the scene, she is hinted at! I hope to continue this story in the next chapter—hopefully it won't be long in coming. Recent updates in the manga brought me back to reading Naruto fanfics once more, and I finally remembered my long-abandoned story...


	5. Search

**Title: **Pink and Black

**Disclaimer: **Naruto belongs to Kishimoto Masashi. No copyright infringement is intended.

**A/N: **This is the direct continuation of the previous prompt, Love Potion (008. Magic)

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**Fitting the Pieces  
**025. Search

Ever since that day Shisui brought the Amortentia potion before him, Itachi had kept in the back of his mind to look out for possible clues to that fragrant scent of nectarines and honey. He had always been of a diligent disposition, and this trait had been a large part of what had shaped him the shinobi he was. While it was certainly true that he had a natural advantage in terms of being born to an illustrious and prosperous clan, he would not had been the hailed prodigy of the Uchiha clan had he not paid for it with time, blood, sweat, and an unflinching will of steel.

At the moment, this curiosity was but a small niggling seed planted in his mind, and without a doubt, not anything of hurried importance. Rather than wasting time chasing after frivolous pursuits, hidden desires or not, Itachi trusted the pieces would fall into place when the right time came.

Having arrived at a decision, Itachi picked up a piece of sweet-smelling nectarine and bit through it neatly. The fresh, sweet juice lingered on his lips, momentarily glistening them as the corners of his mouth tugged up in to a secretive smile.

* * *

_Three months later_

After reporting to the Godaime Hokage about his most recent solo mission, Itachi silently went on his way home and arrived at a rather unexpected scene, with his little brother and his two teammates occupying the front of their house in the Uchiha compound. He paused minutely, a good distance away from the trio, unsure whether to approach or not as Sasuke and Naruto suddenly broke out into a skirmish.

"Ow, teme, what crawled up your ass!?"

"Shut it, dobe."

"Baka!"

A loud thud sounded as two heads hit against each other in a most painful way, bringing the scuffle to an abrupt end.

"Sakura-chan!" Naruto wailed, his hands cradling his head and further mussing up his spiky blond hair in the process.

Sasuke grunted and mumbled in an irritated manner, "...damn it, Sakura. You've _got_ to stop doing that." He rested a palm against his reddened forehead where Sakura had brazenly clunked his head and Naruto's together. "You're too bloody violent nowadays."

"Me? Violent?" Sakura turned on to Sasuke, exasperated. "Who were the two idiots who kept fighting each other at the smallest provocation? _You_ are calling _me_ violent!?"

The pinkette spun around and continued her tirade, aiming her blazing green gaze at her blond teammate. "And you, Naruto! We are invited by Mikoto-san as guests! We haven't even stepped through the door and you two are already fighting!"

Naruto scratched his head, abashed, and then grinned in a boyishly charming way as he threw an arm around his irate female teammate in an attempt to pacify her. "Ne, Sakura-chan, I'm sorry! Don't be angry, please?"

Sakura angled her head and stared at him for a few long seconds before she rolled her eyes and said fondly, "...idiots."

Thankful to the pinkette who had decidedly put a stop to his foolish little brother and his teammate's spontaneous scuffle, the long-haired Uchiha utilized the moment and made his presence known with a subtle flare of his chakra.

"Nii-san! You've returned from your mission?"

Sasuke sprinted over to his older brother, eyes lit up in happiness.

"Aa," Itachi acknowledged with a slight nod.

"Hello, Itachi-san," Sakura greeted politely, dragging Naruto along with her to stop beside Sasuke.

"Sakura-san. Naruto-kun," he replied in kind. "You are here for dinner?"

"Mikoto-san invited us over! She said we'll be having oshiruko for dessert!" the blond jinchuuriki gushed enthusiastically.

"Dobe," said the younger Uchiha, giving his teammate a push. "Go in now, don't keep my mother waiting."

"Fine, I'm going, I'm going! Stop pushing already, teme!" Naruto hollered and tugged Sasuke through the doorway obnoxiously.

Itachi could hear a scuffle of feet and a hasty yell of "Hi, Mikoto-san!" before the door slammed shut in the confusion that was fast becoming the pattern of his otouto and his blond friend.

Sakura shook her head and sighed, "Boys." She lifted her head to look up into Itachi's face, whose taller stature forced her to do so. "I hope your mission was a success, Itachi-san."

"It was," the Uchiha clan heir replied. A sharp pain tore through his upper arm and he stiffened ever so slightly.

Five years in the presence of her reticent Uchiha teammate had Sakura becoming used to interpreting his minuscule changes of expressions, and the pinkette thought it was safe to assume that Sasuke's older brother would be quite similar.

"Are you injured, Itachi-san?"

He hesitated before nodding imperceptibly. "Nothing I cannot handle myself."

"You do know I'm a medic, right?" she questioned, clearly annoyed. Now aware of the fact that the elder Uchiha brother was injured, her eyes scanned across his body and noted that the sleeve of his left upper arm appeared soaked. _Blood_, Sakura thought, _the garment is tight and black, and that's why nobody noticed._

He nodded.

A long moment passed, and Sakura became more and more agitated as the Uchiha made no further comment or move to enlist her help in treating his injury.

"I thought you were better than that, Itachi-san! Sasuke is an idiot, but I didn't take you as one too!"

"...excuse me?"

Whatever protests he had was cut short when the fiery pinkette wrapped her hand around his right wrist and pulled him over to the large oak tree situated beside his home. He was surprised at her impertinence—not many dared to call him names to his face, let alone act so fearlessly around him. His fame preceding him, the general population of shinobi either feared or revered him, with few exceptions.

"Sit," she ordered in a no-nonsense tone, switching over to her medic persona that she adopted when dealing with difficult patients. "Why on earth would you try to tend to injuries on your own when you have a perfectly capable medic in front of you?"

Itachi complied with her demand and sat under the tree, folding his long legs beneath him. He gazed at her blankly and offered no response.

"...unless, you don't trust me?"

Sakura suddenly deflated, and said, "I guess I've given you no reason to trust me. I am only your brother's teammate, and you hardly know me at all. I'm sorry, Itachi-san. But you should really get your arm treated at the hospital at least. Open wounds always have a risk of infection, and you—"

"Sakura-san," Itachi interjected smoothly, "I apologize. I am simply not used to going to the hospital for minor wounds like this. If it is not a bother, I would like you to treat it."

"You call that a minor wound? Your sleeve is soaked in blood!"

Itachi stayed silent at her exclamation. The nurses at the hospital were simply too bothersome, and he tended to avoid the hospital unless he was gravely injured. However, seeing how genuinely concerned the pink-haired medic was instead of fussing over him incessantly like the nurses, he decided to give her a chance. He glanced down at his left arm and then directed his gaze back at her, taking in her flushed appearance.

Sakura got the hint and dropped down to kneel beside him. Taking a pair of scissors out of her medic apron, she gingerly cut away his sleeve and inspected the wound.

"I'm going to do a quick scan with my chakra before healing your arm, Itachi-san. You may feel a bit of a tingle at my diagnostic chakra; please don't fight it."

He made a small noise in affirmation and watched as she lifted a hand alight in green chakra toward his body. _Her chakra feels warm_, Itachi noted absentmindedly.

"Looks like this is the only injury you have, and it's a clean wound," Sakura said lightly, "This will just take a moment, Itachi-san."

She ran her hand slowly over the large gash on his upper left arm, and true to her words, the healing process took no longer than a minute, and once she was done, all that was left was unmarred skin and dried blood.

"There you go! Quick and painless, ne?"

"Thank you, Sakura-san."

"I hope this will change your mind about tending to your own wounds next time, Itachi-san?" she asked cheekily.

"...if you don't mind attending to my injuries in the future, Sakura-san," he replied.

She quirked a delicate pink eyebrow in amusement. "Are you asking me to be your personal medic?"

"If you will consent to it, yes," said Itachi.

She scrutinized him, as if deciding whether he was jesting or not, but his calm composure assured her that yes, he was serious in his request.

"All right, if you insist. Shishou probably will have my head if she knew you asked and I refused, anyway," said Sakura, somewhat exasperated.

Itachi smiled, and Sakura froze on the spot.

"Sakura-san?"

She blinked rapidly a few times and shook herself. "Oh. Right, we should go in, Mikoto-san will be wondering where we are."

He stood up first and stretched out a hand to the pinkette who still appeared a little dazed. "Shall we?"

She took hold of his proffered hand tentatively and stood, but her face turned an alarming shade of red when she found herself standing a little too close to her teammate's older brother.

"Thanks, Itachi-san. I'll head in first. See you at dinner!" Sakura's words rushed out in a blur and she backed up, then ran into the house as if the devil was behind her.

Itachi's amused gaze followed after her until she disappeared into his home. He was half tempted to put his arms around her at her unexpected closeness earlier, but he refrained from it since he could see she was clearly discomforted. The pink-haired kunoichi had decidedly aroused his interest. There was plenty of time later on to get to know her better, seeing how she had agreed to become his personal medic.

More importantly, he has discovered the source of the mysterious scent of nectarines and honey. That warm fragrant scent had hit him when she nearly toppled into him, pink strands of hair swaying in momentum and emitting the very scent that had been on his mind for the past three months.

He looked at the doorway that she had gone through and smiled languidly. _Be prepared, Sakura.  
_

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**A/N:** Thank you to those who had reviewed on the previous chapter! It felt short and incomplete at the time, but I was itching to throw something up to motivate myself in writing again. Every review gives me extra fuel in writing, so thanks again :)


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